once again...

Ok, this is a little embarrassing, but you might get a kick out of it. The other day we were in the store and Grace starts singing a song. At first I'm not paying much attention, she's always singing something. Then I start to actually hear what she's saying and run over to put my hand over her mouth, my eyes the size of saucers. The lyrics I hear here singing (loudly) are:

"You don't have to be beautiful, to turn me on....I just need your body baby..."

Mortified, I ask her where on earth she learned that song, and she said Happy Feet. I told her even though we love that movie and it's a great flick, the words to that song are not very appropriate for her to be singing in public. Once again, I think I'm going to hide that DVD for a while!

Robbins' Race for the Cure

We had a great time at Race for the Cure on Saturday! Kirk ran the 5K, and then joined the kids and me on the 1 mile family fun walk. Grace ran the kids' Dash (about a dozen times). She won one of them and was so proud of her medals and 1st place prize...a stuffed pink bear. She kept asking if we were proud of her and like any good parent we said "yes", but Iwere quick to add that we were just as proud that she ran and had fun, even if she didn't win. I guess that answer wasn't satisfying enough, because then she kept saying "I'm so proud of myself!" We really need to work on that humility! Ben enjoyed all the freebies, we just kept handing him free snacks and drinks and he was as happy as could be! He loved all the life-sized characters we saw. We really had a great day for a wonderful cause!

Becca's trip to Sweden....

Wonderful! Great food, great shopping, great company, lots of rest! I can go on and on. I had a lovely time visiting Anna and getting to know her fiance, Goran. For those of you out of the know, we had originally planned to go as a family the first of August to attend their wedding (Grace and I were both supposed to be in it), and well...I got knocked up. So, my sweet husband let me take 10 days to myself and go visit. I didn't realize how much I needed the break mentally and emotionally and having some quality "me" time, as well as quality time with Anna was priceless!

I had a few days all to myself to tour Stockholm, there's truly something exhilarating about being in a foreign city all by yourself, having the freedom to go where you please, take as much time as you need, and just explore the culture! I am proud to say I successfully used 5 forms of public transportation: train, subway, bike (yes, imagine that), bus and boat! I had my fill (for Grace's sake) of Pippi Longstocking museums, toured old town (my favorite part of Stockholm), shopping galore and just sat on sidewalk cafes taking in the sights.

Anna and I had a few days dedicated to checking things off of the wedding to-do list, which I hope was helpful, as my duties as maid-of-honor are now greatly hindered! We had a great day of touring an island in the archipelago (thousands of islands making up Sweden's coast). We rented bikes and rode all around the island and had a lovely lunch.

The best part was just spending quality time with Anna and Goran, which probably wouldn't have happened at the wedding, so it was a blessing in disguise. They are wonderfully perfect for each other and it was neat to see that love and excitement of a young couple about to get married. They didn't mind at all that I talked a lot about the kids and family life, because they are both longing for it and can't wait to get started. They were generous hosts and took care of me as if I were their teenage exchange student, on the days I was on my own they left me maps and snacks and money to use the bathrooms (yes, you have to pay for public restrooms!) it was really quite sweet.

Now, refreshed and relaxed, I'm back to reality and can't get enough of my husband and kids, absence really does make the heart grow fonder! With the help of my parents, Kirk did a great job alone with the kids and only had one trip to the ER for Ben. He went above and beyond his daddy duties and the bonding they did while I was away is precious to see. Thank you honey!

Quick note: apparently the slideshow is not showing up for everyone, if you click on "view all images" it will take you to the direct site and you can view it there!

Ben update

Well, it's official, our little man is a climber! He loves to climb and sit in our high bar stools, he's climbed out of his crib int he middle of the night (and had a hard fall, it was very traumatic for all), and I've found him on top of the kitchen table and I'm ashamed to admit...even the kitchen counter! (I'm really not a horrible mom, he's just quick!) We've taken up stock in bubble wrap and decided to pad our entire house (and even Ben himself) in the stuff! And to top it all off, he's 110% BOY! He loves to rough house with his sister, he's already trying to tackle her and thinks it's funny to run into the wall and fall down.

He had 2 mega head bumps today, thankfully, Nurse Terri was already scheduled to come this afternoon. I thought I would post a picture of the two of them. She's become such an important and special part of our lives this past year! She's nothing less than AMAZING and we love her to pieces! We are so thankful for good health care professionals who truly do care.

Sweet Story

This is Kirk's busy time of year and for the past 3 nights, he's gotten home after the kids went to bed. They have really been missing him, even though we've stopped by the office a few times. He's usually gone by the time they wake up in the morning as well. So, this morning, the kids and I were getting ready and I heard Grace yell from her room "Mom! Who wrote something on my board?!?" I went back and on Grace's easel, Kirk had written "Daddy hearts Grace" while she was still asleep. She was so tickled and excited that she called him right away on the phone to tell him she had gotten his message. When we got home this afternoon, I went back to her room to check on how her cleaning was coming along and noticed she had written "Grace hearts dad" right beside his message. I almost started crying! It was the sweetest thing and brought tears to my eyes. I know Kirk will be just as touched when he sees it tonight when he gets home!

It's a....

BOY!!!! Here are a couple of the first pictures of our precious baby. He appears healthy and measuring just fine, thank the Lord! We kept asking if she was sure about the gender (she was a fast tech and went over that part really quick). I didn't look at the pictures until later in the afternoon and the last picture was, uh, clearly evident...she even put the cursor towards his anatomy and labeled the picture "it's a boy!" Grace said..."look mom, she left the mouse on the picture!" We are thrilled and can't wait to meet our sweet addition. Grace and Ben will love having a baby brother!